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Amphion floridensis
Rather small for a sphinx moth. Body is mostly black with two yellow lines across the abdomen that are very recognizable during flight. The abdomen has tufts that fan out during flight and condense into three main points when resting. The underside is a rusty orange to a sunset orange with brown tints. The forewings are different shades of brown and black with a very faint white outline. Hindwings have a red-orange median band with a yellow spot. When resting, the bright yellow bands are hidden and there is only one band visible. Adults nectar from many different flowers like Lilac, Milkweed, Phlox, and Blackberry blossoms. Some other favorite nectar sources are streamsides, sap flows, and road puddles. Some host plants for the larvae are Grapevine, Virginia creeper, and Ampelopsis.
Woods, Roadsides, Streamsides, Forests, Fields, and Forest clearings.
This one was flying around my drive way near my head when I was observing a Hummingbird at the feeder with my dad. The moth caught my attention so I got my net and caught her when she was nectaring the lilacs. After I captured her I took some nice shots with my dad's Droid Razr HD camera when she calmed down.
Spotted on Jun 5, 2014
Submitted on Jun 6, 2014
2 Comments
Nice spotting Matt! It's travellerdan from IG, btw.
Hello, Matt! So glad to hear you have such a great interest in Sphingidae. They are my favorite family, too! Have you registered for National Moth Week yet? National Moth Week is a global citizen science event that celebrates the amazing biodiversity of moths. This year, National Moth Week is July 19 to July 27! Your state, Connecticut, is not on the map yet! Looking for moths near an outside light is all you need to do. You can register for a private or public and find more information at www.nationalmothweek.org. It would be great if you are interested in participating. If you add a spotting to the “Moths of the World” mission of a moth found during National Moth Week, you will contribute to important citizen science data! The mission can be found here: http://www.projectnoah.org/missions/8841.... Feel free to contact me with any questions via comments here or in an email: jgorneau@gmail.com.